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Vietnam Sharpens Appeal For The 1%

Jun. 3, 2015

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — A group of Vietnam’s most exclusive hotels in each of the country’s most compelling stops is working to position the destination as a brighter lure for the world’s most upscale travelers.

The five properties, including the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi and The Nam Hai in Hoi An, form the foundation of a new digital platform — Quintessential Collection Vietnam: http://quintessentialcollectionvietnam.com — that will function as the single most important resource for affluent travelers en route to Vietnam.

The other hotels in the collection — The Reverie Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City, La Residence Hotel & Spa in Hue and Paradise Cruises on Halong Bay — each offer a best-in-class experience in their particular destination.

“Knowing where to go for the quintessential Vietnamese accommodation experience is the first best thing to know,” said Jim Sullivan, managing director of Balcony Media Group, the platform’s developer. “But what to do when she gets there, what to read before he goes, what to watch, what to listen to, who to look for — all of this essential information is going to drive the site.”

Every month, the general manager from one of the Quintessential hotels will blog on issues that matter to the 1 percent — on getting a tuxedo made in Hanoi, on reading a translation of the great epic Vietnamese poem, The Tale of Kieu, on a night at the opera, and so on.

The site will also feature lists on issues that matter to the 1 percent, such as where to get exactly the right martini, and what goods are exactly the goods to bring home from a trip.

The site will report on what the world’s leading media are saying about Vietnam. And what activities the 1 percent may want to indulge while in country.

“The headline coming out of Vietnam, for years and years, was ‘Good Morning, Vietnam,’” said Sullivan, who wrote National Geographic’s first travel book to Vietnam. “That headline was fine for a destination that appealed to backpackers. But when a hotel starts picking up guests in a Rolls Royce limited-edition Phantom Dragon, we’re on the cusp of a very elegant evening, indeed. Good Evening, Vietnam.”